Palghat Srirama Bhagavathar
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Palghat Srirama Bhagavathar (1889-1957) was born in Mundakayam village in Shoranur, Palghat, Kerala, India and was one of the most renowned Carnatic vocalists of his time. He took his early gurukulavasam with Palghat Anantarama Bhagavathar as well as leading Carnatic exponents like Maha Vaidyanatha Iyer. His father, Kasturi Ranganathan was an Adhikari or a Revenue Collector in British India who was called Adhikari Rangan Pattar.
Known for his purity of music rendition as well as the gift of a golden voice that had His Blessings, he was famous for ragas like karaharapriya that were rendered with divinity and devotion. At a time when loudspeakers/acoustics were non-existent in the early 1930's and 1940's (pre-independence), he was known for his mellifluous rendition and great voice. His devotion to Lord Rama was well-known. An adept at all the Trinity's compositions, he never hankered for fame or position. He was honoured by the then Maharajas of Mysore and Travancore. His peers included greats in Carnatic music like Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar, Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar and Maharajapuram Viswanatha Iyer, who had great regard for him.
His wife Rugmani Ammal was a great companion who took care of him and his family as he grew up to be a renowned musician of his time. She died in 1991 in her ripe old age, devoted to Lord Krishna temple in Old Kalpathy till her last breath, following the footsteps of her late better half.
He died peacefully in May 1957 in Kalpathy, Kerala, leaving behind disciples like Puducode Krishnamurthy Iyer.
His sons (Late) Ranganathan (Raju), Seshamani, Venkataramanan, Lakshminarayanan and others carry the hoary traditions quietly within the family to this day. Palghat Srirama Bhagavathar's brother, Venkatakrishna Bhagavathar left behind the cross-cultural stamp in Malayalam by introducing padams in Kathakali dance form.
A musician par excellence, he made simplicity a virtue and divinity a permanent feature in his music, with rasika-centricity as his virtue. His raga alapana would be very detailed and stretching leaving all his rasikas mesmerized. Saint Tyagaraja had a great follower in Palghat Srirama Bhagavathar and all his krithis were sung in his performances.
His first Carnatic concert was at the Kalpathy Viswanatha Swamy Temple and so was his last concert.
